Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Research Article
Commonly Confused Aspects of Research Paper: Discussion Paper
Article History Abstract: Background: Confusion about elements of a research paper is
common among students. The key to writing a good research paper is to know
Received: 10.12.2021
these common elements and their definitions. Maybe find that writing a research
Revision: 18.12.2021
paper is not as easy as it seems. There are many parts and steps to the process, and
Accepted: 29.12.2021 it can be hard to figure out what needs to do and when. Objective: This article
Published: 10.01.2021 aims to teach these common aspects of a research paper to avoid common
Author Details mistakes while drafting own. Conclusion: Each section of the research paper
Ahmed Lateef Alkhaqani serves a distinct purpose and highlights a different aspect of the research.
However, before starting drafting the manuscript, having a clear understanding of
Authors Affiliations
each section's purposes will help avoid mistakes.
M.Sc., Ministry of health, Al-Najaf Direction,
Al-Sadder Medical Hospital, Al-Najaf, Iraq
Keywords: confused aspects, elements, research paper, writing a manuscript.
Corresponding Author*
AHMED LATEEF ALKHAQANI
How to Cite the Article:
INTRODUCTION
Ahmed Lateef Alkhaqani. (2022); Commonly The research paper is a common assignment for college-level classes.
It can be daunting to write one, especially if never had any experience
Confused Aspects of Research Paper: Discussion
Paper. SRJ Clin & Med Sci. 2(1) 1-4. with academic writing. This article will go over what a research paper
Copyright @ 2022: This is an open-access article
entails and the key elements that should always be included. There are
distributed under the terms of the Creative three sections in a research paper: the introduction, the body, and the
Commons Attribution license which permits
conclusion. The introduction should introduce the topic and include a
unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction
in any medium for non commercial use thesis statement reflecting analysis of it, and a brief outline of the points
(NonCommercial, or CC-BY-NC) provided the will make in the body paragraphs (Moher et al., 2010). The body should
original author and source are credited. be organized logically and move from general to specific points as move
DOI: 10.47310/srjcms.2022.v02i01.001 through the argument. Finally, the conclusion should restate the main
point and summarizer key arguments (Gray et al., 2017).
A research paper is an in-depth essay that requires a significant amount of academic knowledge to complete. These
papers typically explore topics related to the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. To create a research paper,
one must follow certain guidelines and include specific elements (Jochen and Kotz 2013). This article will help master
the most important aspects of academic writing, from understanding how to structure a paper to citing sources correctly
to avoid common mistakes while drafting own.
Writing a research paper requires a proper understanding of what each section should capture. This will help avoid
repetition or providing the wrong details in the various parts of the research paper. To write an impressive research paper,
researchers must first understand why each section of the research paper was written, what purpose it serves and what it
contains. Therefore, many researchers often find it difficult to understand the difference between some parts of the
research paper and are unsure whether they are interchangeable or serve distinct purposes. This article lists the
differences between some sections and the more confusing aspects of a research paper.
1
Ahmed Lateef Alkhaqani; SRJ Clin & Med Sci; Vol-2, Iss- 1 (Jan-Feb, 2022):1-4
2
Ahmed Lateef Alkhaqani; SRJ Clin & Med Sci; Vol-2, Iss- 1 (Jan-Feb, 2022):1-4
and Cals 2013a). On the other hand, the discussion References and bibliography refer to a list, usually
section summarizes and explains or interprets the placed at the end of the research paper, of all the
study's results in detail. Both items can be grouped sources materials “books, articles, documents, and other
under a single section, “results and discussion,” or the sources, etc.” that may have been used to gather
results can be separated into a single section followed information needed for work. The only difference is, all
by a discussion, where the implications of the results references must be cited in the main text (J. Cals and
are talked about as well as final share comments (Cals Kotz 2013).
and Kotz 2013).
Footnotes Versus Endnotes
Figure Captions Versus Legends Versus Labels Footnotes are explanatory notes or the comments
These terms refer to distinct items that serve added at the bottom of the page and marked the
different purposes and can‟t be used interchangeably. footnote and the explanatory statement or word with the
Figure captions are the titles or headings of figures, same symbol or superscript number. In contrast,
tables, or illustrations and tell the reader what an endnotes are added supplementary information at the
illustration contains. While Legends are brief end of the research paper marked with a superscript.
descriptions of tables or figures, which often indicate However, they are also marked with a high number.
how to interpret the information presented in them and Footnotes can be useful for quickly identifying the
facilitate understanding of the data (Kotz and Cals information source at a glance at the page bottom.
2013b). On the other hand, Labels are figure parts or While endnotes help eliminate page clutter and help
illustrations and are used to highlight and name parts of maintain flow while reading.
a diagram. They are used to identify each illustration
aspect. These aspects are required for a table, figure, or CONCLUSION
illustration to be completely understandable and Each research paper section of the manuscript serves
independent of the manuscript's main text. a distinct purpose and highlights a different aspect of
the research. Therefore, before starting to draft the
Implications Versus Limitations Versus manuscript, a clear understanding of each section's
Recommendations purpose will help to avoid mistakes.
These are significant-conclusion section
components, which summarize the results and the Recommendation
study's gist. Implications are the conclusions drawn It is important to understand the different elements
from the study. They suggest how the study results can of a research paper before writing it. This article helps
be useful. Through implications, it can show how study the researcher understand the difference between the
can be applied to real-life policies and practices. While discussed aspects. When the researchers clearly
research limitations define the context within which understand each section's purpose, they will manage to
the study results should be interpreted and applied. write a successful research paper before drafting a
They are based on several reasons, such as paper.
unavailability of needed resources, methods used,
ineffective research design, or lack of access to
advanced instruments and apparatus.
REFERENCES
1. Cals, J. W., & Kotz, D. (2013). Effective writing
On the other hand, recommendations are and publishing scientific papers, part VIII:
suggestions from research for a specific course of action references. Journal of clinical
for subsequent study. Once study limitations are epidemiology, 66(11), 1198.
included, ideas for future study can be suggested based https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclinepi.2013.06.015.
on questions or gaps that the research cannot address. It 2. Cals, J. W., & Kotz, D. (2013a). Effective Writing
can also recommend other elements of the study topic and Publishing Scientific Papers, Part III:
that might be interesting to work on and form leading Introduction. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology,
research questions (Gray, Grove, and Sutherland 2016). 66(7), 702.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclinepi.2013.01.004.
Citations Versus References Versus Bibliography 3. Cals, J. W., & Kotz, D. (2013b). Effective writing
Citation is done when selecting accurate ideas from and publishing scientific papers, part II: title and
the other researchers' work, either in the form of abstract. Journal of clinical epidemiology, 66(6),
quotations or paraphrases. Citations are included in the 585. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclinepi.2013.01.005.
main body of the research paper, where the information 4. Cals, J. W., & Kotz, D. (2013c). Effective writing
source is cited along with the statement. Both citations and publishing scientific papers, part VI:
and references are used to credit the authors whose discussion. Journal of clinical
work may have been cited when writing the manuscript, epidemiology, 66(10), 1064.
making a quotation in the main text, i.e., quoting or https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclinepi.2013.04.017.
paraphrasing another work.
3
Ahmed Lateef Alkhaqani; SRJ Clin & Med Sci; Vol-2, Iss- 1 (Jan-Feb, 2022):1-4